Muldoon and Loughney selected

Good news for Connacht Rugby this week.

John Muldoon and Ronan Loughney have been named in Declan Kidney’s Irish squad that will face the Barbarians in Gloucester on May 29.

Loughney, who impressed the visiting Irish management team on their lats visit to the Sportsground for the Aironi fixture, is one of seven uncapped players in the squad which comprises players from Connacht, Munster and Ulster as none of these teams will have any involvement in the RaboDirect Pro 12 final, which takes place in Dublin on Sunday, May 14 - the day before the squad is due to depart Ireland for the Barbarians game.

Leinster players selected for the Ireland tour to New Zealand and who play in the Rabodirect Pro12 final will join up with the squad in Gloucester.

More good news for the province was the official sanctioning of a Connacht A team in next seasons British and Irish Cup. The Connacht A side, to be known as the Eagles, will continue to be coached by Nigel Carolan, and is a vital step in providing competitive games for up-and-coming young players and in giving fringe and those returning from injury game time.

“The last four years have really shown how important the competition is for supplying game-time to players at a high level,” said Carolan. “It’s a great opportunity for our fringe players to gain exposure at a professional level and we see this as big step forward for Connacht Rugby in the pursuit to develop indigenous players.”